Design is being leveraged by an increasing number of organizations from all across the globe as a method of obtaining a competitive advantage. In order to expand your design thinking horizon, and discover new ways of leveraging the power of design to benefit your organization, try raising your design “I.Q.” Following are several suggestions to help you become more design-aware:

■  Read more about business and design in relevant media such as Business Week’s Design & Innovation section and in other relevant media (see resource list).

■  Consider how the best companies and organizations in your sector use design to differentiate themselves, create stronger brands and offer better customer experiences.

■  Learn more about how leading companies including Apple, BMW, IKEA, Target, Motorola and others leverage design to be more successful.

■  Visit art and design museums to look at examples of design — including products, automobiles, posters and more — in order to consider design’s role in building stronger brands and more successful organizations.

■  Spend more time exchanging ideas and information with designers to gain a greater understanding of how they think and how they approach their work.

■  Attend a seminar on Design Thinking, or business and design, to obtain useful and actionable insights for your organization.

■  Enroll in or audit an art, architecture, graphic design, web design or product design class to help broaden your business thinking and to bring new insights to your work.

■  Visit the websites of leading design organizations (see resource list) to gain additional information and perspectives regarding how design and Design Thinking can benefit your organization.

■  Consider how design has influenced the purchase of products and services you own or subscribe to and use this knowledge to develop insights you can use in your business activities.

This article originally appeared in the Fall 2008 edition of the HSMAI Marketing Review, the premier publication of the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International – HSMAI. To learn more, visit HSMAI at www.hsmai.org.